Ship propeller



May 21, 1935. J, WARD 2,001,896

SHIP PROPELLER Filed Aug. 24, 1933 IN VEN TOR.

Patented May 21, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE smr PROPELLER Charles J. Ward, Grassmere, Staten Island, N. Y. Application August 24, 1933, Serial No. 686,662

3 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in propellers for ships and self navigating vessels, and its leading object is to provide a propeller with pitched blades which are mounted at angles to the axis of the operating shaft, less than the normal right angular blade relation, so that greater efficiency in ship propulsion may be obtained, resulting in either a lower consumption of fuel, or faster travel of the vessel through the water, with a consequent reduction in insurance costs, labor and investment costs and general operating expenses.

With the above and. other objects in view, the invention consists in certain new and useful constructions, combinations, and arrangements of parts, clearly described in the following'specification, and fully illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:-

Fig. 1 is a side view of the improved propeller, illustrating the rearward inclination of the screw pitched blades.

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation thereof. Fig. 3 is a front elevation thereof and Fig. 4 is a transverse V sectional view taken of line 4-4 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to the accompanying drawing illustrating the practical embodiment of the invention,

5 designates a webbedbearing plate, which is attached by suitable rivets or bolts to the ship, and through which the usual propeller shaft 6 extends. On the outer end of this shaft the improved propeller l is mounted, as by means of the nut 8,

threaded on the end of the shaft.

The propeller includes the hub 9, the blades I0, II and I2, and the integral webs l3, l4 and I5, which reinforce the blades on the hub, the whole being shown in the illustrated form as being cast in one piece. The blades and their webs may be cast separately and then riveted to the hub, according to current practice of separable mounting. 6

Each of the blades is inclined rearwardly toward the wake of the vessel, so that when they rotate in a forward driving action, the forward surfaces of the blades will not offer wing surfaces at substantially right angles to the shaft, but will offer surfaces over which the water will more readily flow. The blades are mounted so that they are spaced equal distances from each other, in radial balanced relation.

The web l3 of the blade I0, is provided with a screw pitch in the same general direction, but at a different angle from the screw pitch of the webs extend for a considerable distance along the shanks or bodies of the blades, and act as intermediate propelling vanes or blades, in addition to reinforcing the connection between the blades and the hubs, so as to resist displacement of the blades under external hydraulic pressure toward the axis of the rotating propeller.

By reversing the'direction of rotation of the propeller it may be operated to drive the vessel rearwardly.

The particular screw pitch which the blades are given, and the relative area of the blades, are matters of design, and determined by the particular kind of vessel to be served by the propeller.

Due to the fact that the propeller offers inclined resistance surfaces to the water, and due further to the fact that the intermediate vanes or blades materially increase the frictional bearing engagement of the propeller with the water, and cooperate with the main blades, to produce a direction going line movement of'the vessel, with the minimum vertical and horizontal wastage of power, greater efficiency the expenditure of the energy of the engine is obtained. This will result in lower costs of transportation, or greater speed for a given period of navigation, with corresponding savings in insurance, operating costs and interest on cargo and investment.

" Having described my invention, I claim:'-

1. A ship propeller having a plurality of blades rigidly connected to the central portion thereof and screw pitched to produce a propulsive action in water, the blades being inclined rearwardly of the normal axis of forward rotation to present sloping external surfaces to the water, the inner surface portions of the blades being connected to screw pitched webs.

2. A water navigation vessel propeller having a hub and a plurality of blades extending therefrom,

the blades being helically pitched on the hub and blade. The web ll of the blade H, and the web 

